BP ISSUES

On the day I got my negative Covid result after having the Coronavirus, I found out I have hypertension.  During my past doctor appointments, my blood pressure had been running high, lik3 138/85.  On my last visit, it was like 150-85.  On 11/29 I went to my allergist to get my new covid test and while I was there they checked my blood pressure and it was 150/100 on the left arm and something similar on the right arm.  I hadn't experienced any headaches or dizziness so he wasn't overly concerned, however, he had me get in touch with my primary physician.  I saw him over a video visit and he prescribed me a low dose of Amlodipine.

That's not exactly the main reason for this post.

Last year at this time I didn't have a primary doctor and one of my resolutions (I forgot to list in the last post) was to get a primary physician..  I used to have one across the street from my apartment and they were a part of Montefiore's medical group, but I was dissatisfied with them a few years ago and never went back. During the pandemic, I got connected with NY Presbyterian virtual clinic and through that, got connected with a regular doctor. In fact, I had seen my new doctor just two months before the blood pressure incident.  He is great.  He is pleasant and doesn't seem like I am a bother.  The last two doctors I had with Montefiore were awful.  The first was a bossy female and the second was a cranky old guy. You have to be able to communicate with your doctor in order to get good results. My new guy asks questions and listens to my concerns.  He prescribed a medication, but a low dose and he had me monitor the pressure.

This brings me to the second point of this post.   While monitoring my blood pressure, I noticed it did go down while taking the Amlodipine.  The left arm was a little higher than the right one, but for the most part the higher arm was still under 140/80, for the most part.  I ate boiled plantain one evening and the blood pressure dropped even further to about 128/70.  A couple of days after NOT eating plantain and the pressure was close to 140/80.  Every time I ate the plantain the pressure dropped, so I have a feeling my diet definitely wasn't right and I wasn't eating enough potassium.  I improved my diet since mid-December by eating plantains and leafy vegetables  And no, I don't overdo it on the plantain.  I eat a whole one, maybe two depending on my meal.  I don't want to overdo it on sweet stuff.